Pope Proclaims Religious Freedom as First Right in State of the World Address
Peace is built and preserved only when human beings can freely seek and serve God in their hearts, in their lives and in their relationships with others.
Another sign of the marginalization of religion, and of Christianity in particular, is the banning of religious feasts and symbols from civic life under the guise of respect for the members of other religions or those who are not believers. By acting in this way, not only is the right of believers to the public expression of their faith restricted, but an attack is made on the cultural roots which nourish the profound identity and social cohesion of many nations. (Pope Benedict XVI)
Pope Benedict XVI addresses the Diplomatic Corps
PrintVATICAN CITY (Catholic Online) - Every New Year the Pope addresses the Diplomatic Corps. The Vatican has diplomatic realtions with 181 Nations. There was a strong expectation that with the increasing religious persecution and violence in the Middle East, India, Pakistan, Vietnam, China and spreading throughout the world, that the Holy Father would continue his impassioned call for religious freedom to be recognized as a fundamental human right by every Nation. That is precisely what he did.
We have extensively covered the growing global hostility toward Catholics and other Christians. It is one of our highest editorial priorities. We must pray for and stand with those who suffer for the Lord; whether it is the evil of the violence we have witnessed in Baghdad, Mumbia, or Alexandria which resulted in the martyrdom of blood or the growing "Christianophobia" in the West, including the United States of America.
The Holy See released the full text of this profound, pastoral and prophetic address. We offer our readers the portions below. We invite our readers to continue to pray for the Pope, that he would have all of the grace he needs to courageously exercise his apostolic office. We ask you to pray for our persecuted brethren throughout the world. Finally, to pray for true and authentic peace which, as the Pope made clear, requires the recognition of a fundamental human right to religious freedom. Finally we ask our readers to study the manner in which the Pope articulates the truth concerning religious freedom as the model for our own defense of that freedom in the public square:
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On the State of the World : Address of Pope Benedict XVI to the Vatican Diplomatic Corps
Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am pleased to welcome you, the distinguished representatives of so many countries, to this meeting which each year assembles you around the Successor of Peter. It is a deeply significant meeting, since it is a sign and illustration of the place of the Church and of the Holy See in the international community. ... As a new year begins, our own hearts and the entire world continue to echo the joyful message proclaimed twenty centuries ago in the night of Bethlehem, a night which symbolizes humanity's deep need for light, love and peace. ...
In longing for these gifts, each person is seeking his Creator, for "God alone responds to the yearning present in the heart of every man and woman" (Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Verbum Domini, 23). Humanity throughout history, in its beliefs and rituals, demonstrates a constant search for God and "these forms of religious expression are so universal that one may well call man a religious being" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 28). The religious dimension is an undeniable and irrepressible feature of man's being and acting, the measure of the fulfilment of his destiny and of the building up of the community to which he belongs. Consequently, when the individual himself or those around him neglect or deny this fundamental dimension, imbalances and conflicts arise at all levels, both personal and interpersonal.
This primary and basic truth is the reason why, in this year's Message for World Day of Peace, I identified religious freedom as the fundamental path to peace. Peace is built and preserved only when human beings can freely seek and serve God in their hearts, in their lives and in their relationships with others. Ladies and Gentlemen, your presence on this solemn occasion is an invitation to survey the countries which you represent and the entire world. In this panorama do we not find numerous situations in which, sadly, the right to religious freedom is violated or denied? It is indeed the first of human rights, not only because it was historically the first to be recognized but also because it touches the constitutive dimension of man, his relation with his Creator. ...
Looking to the East, the attacks which brought death, grief and dismay among the Christians of Iraq, even to the point of inducing them to leave the land where their families have lived for centuries, has troubled us deeply. To the authorities of that country and to the Muslim religious leaders I renew my heartfelt appeal that their Christian fellow-citizens be able to live in security, continuing to contribute to the society in which they are fully members. In Egypt too, in Alexandria, terrorism brutally struck Christians as they prayed in church. This succession of attacks is yet another sign of the urgent need for the governments of the region to adopt, in spite of difficulties and dangers, effective measures for the protection of religious minorities. Need we repeat it?
In the Middle East, Christians are original and authentic citizens who are loyal to their fatherland and assume their duties toward their country. It is natural that they should enjoy ...
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That's why I am here brother vance. To teach islal, REAL Islam to all my catholic brothers and sisters. Islam is a deadly threat. No one in his right mind can ever deny its insidious existence and satanoic influence on wordly affairs. Now pakistan wants OUR BELOVED POPE TO APOLOGISE for deffending Christ! Obvioulsy he should not EVER concede even a fraction of an inch to these satanic islamist blackmails, threats and deceiteful tactics of intimidation and islamization!
Jorge, Your posts are stop on. Thank you for educating us because you have done your homework better than me. God bless.
See the "difference" between muslim "moderates" and the "radicals"?!?..It's right here:
Relax: Turkish PM again says there's no Islamic terrorism
Erdogan also famously said this about "moderate Islam": "These descriptions are very ugly, it is offensive and an insult to our religion. There is no moderate or immoderate Islam. Islam is Islam and that's it."
In this case, of course, he appears to be saying that the terrorists are twisting and hijacking Islam, but he could also mean that what the jihadis are doing is not terrorism. For Erdogan, groups like Islamic Jihad and Hizballah (the Party of Allah) and Hamas (the Islamic Resistance Movement) do not commit acts of terrorism. They are jihadis, freedom fighters, warriors for Allah. And that is how he would like the West to think about them as well. And meanwhile, like so many other Islamic spokesmen around the world, he wants you to believe that people associate Islam with terrorism because of the work of greasy Islamophobes, not because Islamic jihadists themselves invoke Islam to explain and justify their violent actions.
"Turkish Premier Rejects Terminology Associating Islam with Terrorism," from Turkish Weekly, January 11 (thanks to Sr. Soph):
Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan has rebuked coining the term "Islamic terrorist organization" for Muslim groups that commit acts of terrorism.
"On every international occasion we have expressed our rejection of the term 'Islamic terror organization.' Bringing together the words of 'Islam' and of 'terrorism' is the biggest injustice that can be made to Islam. We are aware that a global campaign is underway against Muslims and we know who is behind that campaign," Erdogan on Monday told a ceremony in the Kuwaiti capital where he was presented with the Outstanding Personality in the Islamic World Award of the Sheikh Fahad al-Ahmad International Award for Charity.
Erdogan said the anti-Muslim campaign in the West gained momentum particularly through the news media, saying "an insidious enmity" had been promoted.
"Is it possible to associate a religion with an inherent peaceful cause to terrorism? Those who kill in the name of Islam is gravely misguided and they stray from the religion itself," Erdogan said.
Erdogan said Turkey exerted sincere efforts to eliminate prejudices against Islam, however adding that Muslims should also do self-criticism.
If they took him up on that, it would be a first. In over seven years of Jihad Watch and a great deal of monitoring of jihad activity for years before that, I have never seen a Muslim engage in any honest self-criticism about how jihadists use the texts and teachings of Islam to promote violence and supremacism. Instead, it has been a never-ending cascade of finger-pointing, denial, evasion of responsibility, and claims of victim status.
Thanks Lilian! May the light of OUR LORD CHRIST JESUS shine on all mankind and free the muslims from the heinous shackles of islam! Amen!
Jorge, thank you for your commitment to revealing the nature of Islam. The Church needs to fight the religion. IIslam is nothing but a "legitimization of lies." It was established by an immoral, evil, worldly, and ignorant dictator. May Jesus Christ Our Lord destroy this religion that has held people captive for centuries.
JeanCatherine....I don't know how much it costs. But I definitely think the pope doesn't have faith in the faithful and the power of witnessing to others.. think about it, if the 12 disciples gave into the pressures of public humiliation and lack of funds, do you think we'd be here as faithful servants ? I think the Pope has made a big mistake by denying the appeal. No one is perfect, but this is equal to starving your puppy. Its very saddening, I just feel bad for my Catholic friends.
No Way
How can these churches reopen if they cannot be sustained by the faithful? What do you think it costs to keep a church open?
This State of the World address is beautiful !! I totally understand the pope's position here, but I'm still mad at him for refusing to reopen the churches in Boston. Several of my friends have been going to the vigils in hopes of reopening them but he has denied them. What's it going to cost him to let them reopen ?!?!
Islam opposes Christ and oposes our Pope because islam HAS NO RESPECT whatsoever for religious freedom, never had and never will have, since it proclaims DEATH for defaming islam, or muhammad or for muslims who become apostates. JESUS CHRIST is GOD and the ONLY solutuion for saving muslims from this evil intolerance, and dehumanising nature that even force muslims to LOVE LIES, TO LOVE HATRED, TO FOMENT DIVISION AND VIOLENCE both inwards and outwards against fellow human beings!
Good.